“Now that I can believe. What about your Dad. Are you worried about him?”
“Not really. I’ve had a talk with the Director of Golden Lifestyles, the Assisted Living place. She’s going to be super vigilant with Dad now. They’ll watch who tries to visit him other than us with an eagle eye.”
“Well that’s good. I like Uncle Finn a lot. Maybe I’ll come down and see him. When I get a car.”
“Sure, that would be good.”
“One thing.”
“Yes?”
“What about Stevie?”
CHAPTER 18
Cassie’s mind reeled. “Stevie? Why are you asking about Stevie?”
Derek explained, “Well, if this nut who took your Dad is so hung up on this Challenge thing, who’s to say if he doesn’t think he should take Stevie to teach us a lesson?”
Cassie went silent for a while. When she spoke again, her voice was strained.
“You think that’s what he’s about, teaching us a lesson?”
“Yeah, it seems that way. In the message he talks about people near and dear to us, doesn’t he?”
“Oh, God. I have to call Lee. I didn’t think of it that way. I’m going to have to call her right now. I’ll talk to you later, Derek.”
“OK. Take care. Keep in touch.”
Cassie hung up and dialed Lee’s number, her hands shaking. First Dad, now this new worry. She visualized her nephew’s tiny face with its downy skin. He was such a little boy yet. Nothing must happen to him.
The phone rang and finally Lee’s voice came on giving a message. Cassie debated with herself as to whether she should leave a message or keep trying. She left a brief message, “Lee, please call me back as soon as you get this. It’s important.”
She really didn’t want to get Lee upset. But she wanted her to be on her guard. Derek had raised a question now that she had no answer for: Was there someone out to harm them?
Why would someone say that, the people you care about? It had not entered her mind that Stevie might be a target for this person. But there were so many stories in the news of strange, frightening people doing unthinkable things. She thought that there may always have been these people but now, with news 24/7 on the cable stations, a continuous parade of horror was fed to the public. Some people ate it up and wanted more, but others were sickened by it. Nevertheless, it would be foolish to stick their heads in the sand and not think about what might happen. Be prepared, that was it.
She was on her lunch hour at work, walking back from a restaurant. She hoped that Lee would call her but it was hard to take personal calls at work. If Lee called while she was at work, she’d just take her break, that’s all, and go into the meeting room. Nobody was using it this afternoon.
When the call came, she filled Lee in on the idea that Derek had put to her. Lee had the same horrified reaction. “What should I do, Cass?”
“I don’t know, Lee. Maybe your friend could keep a close eye on him?”
“Well, he gets on and off the school bus at her house, so she can see him on and off. That’s a good thing. He sometimes plays in the yard after school. Maybe she could make sure he’s always in her sight. I guess that’s going to be hard, though. I’m going to call her right now and make sure she knows, anyway.” Lee hung up and Cassie went back to work.
When Lee called Andrea, she said that Stevie had just got off the bus and was eating a snack of milk and cookies. She was just as disturbed as Lee when she heard Lee’s concerns.
“I’ll certainly keep an eye on him. Another thing I can do is make sure that Mowgli is in the yard if Stevie is out there. If a stranger comes around, he’ll bark and defend the family”. Mowgli was a mastiff, a terrifying looking animal, but gentle as a kitten to his family and friends.
Lee hung up, feeling calmer. At least Stevie was safe at Andrea’s house.
CHAPTER 19
Cassie arrived at Golden Lifestyles after work. It was a half hour’s drive so that wasn’t too bad. To go to Dad’s house was an hour and a half’s drive. She and Lee had planned to find a place no more than a half hour from either one. That hadn’t been easy. They had visited quite a few before finding one that they thought would suit Dad. In spite of the problem on the first day and his disappearance, they still thought this was the best place.
She went in as the sun was getting low in the sky. The lights were on inside and a gas fire was burning in the hearth in the big sitting room. Her Dad should be expecting her. She spotted him sitting in an easy chair and went over, slipping off her coat.
“Hi, Dad, how are you?”
She got a blank look. He said, “The woman here said I have to sit in the living room because someone is coming to see me. Do you know who it is?”
He looked at her with a look that broke her heart. She said, sitting down in front of him, “Yes, I’m the one who is coming to see you. It’s Cassie, Dad.”
“Dad? Do I have a daughter?” he looked puzzled.
“Dad, I’m your daughter Cassie. You remember.”
Suddenly, his face lit up. “Cassie! I’m glad you got here. I’ve been waiting for quite a while.” He got up and came over to hug her. “How are you?”
Cassie hugged him back. “I’m fine, Dad, very good, and glad to see you.”
She questioned him about the day when the man had driven him away from Golden Lifestyles, but he only vaguely remembered it. His face became strained. “I was very hungry. I think he could have at least treated to lunch, don’t you? It wasn’t a very nice place, you know.”
She decided not to question him any further in case he became upset. It must have been a bad experience and she really didn’t want to bring it back for him.
For the rest of the visit, he was the Dad she remembered, smart and funny and entertaining. It was a good visit, she thought. When she got up to leave, he hugged her and said, “Don’t be a stranger, Cassie. The people here are nice and I appreciate how much they do, but I miss you.”
She left with her eyes full of tears. She’d asked him to be sure not to go anywhere with anyone but herself, Lee or Rob, but who knew if he could remember it if the occasion came. She also repeated this to the Director.
She headed back to her apartment. Her roommate was watching TV and eating popcorn. Cassie took some popcorn and sat down on the couch beside her. The roommate looked at her. “Did you get your registration done yet?”
Cassie shook her head. “No, I’ve just been too worried with this whole thing with my Dad. I just had to let it go.”
“Let it go! Well, why don’t you enroll online?”
“You know, that’s a good idea. I just hadn’t thought of it.”
“Sure, my sister is taking an online degree. She has a full time job so she does it in her spare time.”
“Thanks, girlfriend. I think I will do it.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Cassie went into her bedroom and booted up her computer. She brought up some education websites and checked to see what was offered in library science at various colleges. Wow, it really was possible to do it that way. Working in a library, she should have known that. In the back of her mind, maybe she had known, but the opportunity to do anything about it had never come her way. Now she could. It might be the perfect answer as her time was so limited. She vowed to get started registering tomorrow. Meanwhile, she needed to take a hot shower and get into bed. She was suddenly very tired. Her cell phone rang and she looked at the caller ID. Rob. She just couldn’t talk tonight. She picked up her robe and headed for the shower.
CHAPTER 20
Derek was sitting in the Gunk Hole, at the bar. He was being careful not to have too many because he’d been asked if he’d fill in for somebody tonight. It was the opportunity to make a couple of bucks. His guitar leaned against his stool. He was mulling over his conversation with Cassie. A strange thing, her father disappearing and appearing again with a warning. Maybe it was just another nut. There were plenty of them out there. But what if there wa
s a serious meaning behind this? He didn’t like it.
He felt the air move as someone sat down beside him. He turned his head and looked into Colleen’s eyes. She was grinning at him.
“Hey, stranger.”
He flicked her chin. “Hey, it’s you again.”
Colleen went on, “So how are things going?”
He looked at her. She had color in her cheeks and her dark hair waved around her face.
“Things are going OK for now. Did you just get in from Boston?”
“Yes, I just did. I thought you might be here.”
“I’m predictable, right?” He wondered if she had just thought to look for him in any of the bars on Main Street.
“I wouldn’t say that. Maybe you’ve changed.”
“Well, bet you don’t know this. I’ve got a gig here tonight.”
“Oh, great! Will you be singing any of your own songs?”
Derek felt embarrassed. Most of his songs were country western laments. He still hadn’t started on new work. “Er, do you think country would go over here?”
“Why not? If it’s your thing. You could always throw something else in too.”
“Like what?”
“You’re the songwriter, not me. Let me see. I specialize in Irish folk music myself now. I just don’t know what you would be comfortable with. How about some of the old songs you used to sing? They’re still good.”
“Guess I’ll have to do some heavy thinking and fast!”
“The crowd here is older tonight, so if you go back in time for a couple of tunes, they’ll probably love it.”
“Good suggestion.”
“You’re still going to be playing with us this weekend, right?”
“Of course. I can’t afford not to work.”
Colleen waved over the bartender and ordered a Cosmopolitan.
“You know, I never asked about your family. Didn’t they come from New England originally.?”
Derek looked down into his beer, at the golden bubbles rising and popping.
“As you know, my Mom is dead. I think my Dad is somewhere up around here but I lost touch with him. My grandmother is also gone.”
“How about your grandfather?”
Derek’s face darkened. “I’d rather not talk about him. He died recently.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to raise painful memories.”
“That’s OK. I’ve been on my own for a while. What you see is what you get.”
Although he hadn’t asked about her family, Colleen went on, “We never talked about this when we were in Texas, did we? My parents live near Boston and I have two sisters and two brothers. We all get along pretty well and they’re happy I moved back here. I’m kind of the rebel of the family, though.”
“Oh yeah? I always loved a rebel chick.” He leaned over to kiss her.
She returned the kiss, touching his cheek gently and asked, “So, have you thought of contacting your father?”
Derek shifted on his seat. “No, not really. He was divorced from my Mom. I’m really not close to my relatives.”
“Maybe he’d like to hear from you.”
“If he wanted to hear from me, I think he’d have got in touch, don’t you?”
Derek’s voice was sharp.
Colleen shook her head and sipped her drink before saying, “You know, things happen, Derek. People do get out of touch even if they don’t mean to. That’s kind of what happened to me when I went to Texas. I meant to call and write but I just never did. My family was trying to get in touch but I moved a couple of times. They thought I didn’t want to hear from them after a while so they made less of an effort. Then I decided to come back here and that was when I realized I’d given them a hard time”
Derek grunted and finished his glass of beer. He called for another one. The bar was getting more crowded.
“I’ll be going on in a half hour. Are you going to stick around? If you are, we could have something to eat afterwards.”
“Sure, that sounds good. I wouldn’t miss it for the world!” Colleen winked. “I’m going to just say hello to some people and find a seat, then.”
She walked away and Derek saw her sit down with a group of people. A man with short brown hair hugged her and Derek wondered who he was. The group looked as though they could be students.
Then it got close to the time he was to go “on stage” although the stage here was just a small platform.
Colleen’s questions had made him aware that he still hadn’t produced any new songs. Maybe tomorrow he’d start on that. He walked to the stage and perched on a stool and struck a few chords from his guitar. The bar patrons quieted somewhat although a low buzz went on, especially from the other end of the room. Derek shook his long hair back over his shoulder and began to sing a country western song. When the song ended, there was applause. He wished he could write a song that would get a standing ovation. That would be great. Someone called out asking if he knew a certain song and since he did, he played and sang it. Then sang another of the songs he’d planned. The performance went on, with the customers requesting songs and Derek playing familiar country songs. When he announced it was the end of his performance, he got a nice round of applause. That hadn’t been too hard.
Colleen came over and they sat down at a small table. “Derek, that was great, really good. I’d love to hear what you’ve been working on, though.”
Derek said, “I’ll do that but I’m not ready yet. Don’t push me, Colleen.” He glared at her.
“I didn’t mean to do that, Derek.” Her eyes were hurt.
“Yeah, well, it’s something I’ll do but I don’t want to yet.” He turned to the waitress and ordered a burger and fries.
Colleen ordered, too. “I think I’ll have the broiled shrimp, please.”
“Are you going back to Boston tomorrow?”
“No, I only teach two days a week. Tomorrow I’ll be here and then this weekend, we’ll be doing a wedding and back to the Gunk Hole again.”
“That’s good. I need the work.”
“You can’t go on with just our band, though, can you? We all need other jobs to survive.”
“I’m looking now. There isn’t a huge pool of employment around here, you know.”
“Yes, I know it’s just a small town. You might think of going off-Cape. The traffic won’t be so bad since it’s not the summer season.”
“The only tricky thing about that, Derek said, taking a bite of his hamburger, “is that I don’t have a car yet.”
“Well, if you want, I can take you around the car dealers tomorrow. I have some time on my hands.”
“If you wouldn’t mind, that would be a big help.”
“Sure, no prob.” Colleen was enjoying her grilled shrimp.
They had another drink, finished their food and somehow drifted out together. Somehow, they ended up at Derek’s rented cottage and the rest was inevitable.
CHAPTER 21
Lee came home from school and threw her books across the room. That wasn’t far because her apartment was tiny.
She talked to the four walls. “I can’t do this!”
The walls had no comment. She went on, “Statistics, anatomy. Who do I think I am, trying to understand medicine and math? Being a waitress pays good money. I can just be more careful and save enough. I don’t have to put myself through this?”
She went into the kitchen area and put on the water for tea. Then put out a can of soup. For a week now, she’d gone to class, come home, sweated over a load of homework and then had to go out to work until midnight. Her first class was at 8 AM the next morning.
Some days she felt she couldn’t keep it up. Not and get the kind of grades she intended to achieve.
Wearily, she drank her tea and went to pick up her books again. Maybe she could just get through one more day. It was for Stevie, after all, that she was doing this. Not that she’d had much time for him. The worry about someone doing harm to him was fading. Nothing had happened and Andr
ea was keeping a wary eye out.
She’d heard nothing more from the detective as to Jay’s death. That made her nervous. Was she still a suspect? Nobody was telling her she could relax. She might just call him to find out how the investigation was going. But right now, she had work to do.
She thought, as she opened the first book, that she and Cassie and Derek ought to think about getting together just to compare notes. If she had a moment to spare. She blinked and concentrated on the page again.
Cassie was thinking along the same lines. She was busier than she’d ever been. Running out to see Dad every other evening was a routine now. She worked full time at the library. Then, she had registered for classes online. That was taking up all the “extra” time she had. She didn’t expect Lee to do much, but Lee had made time to drop in on Dad on the weekends sometimes, taking Stevie along. Dad didn’t always recognize them, Lee said, but it cheered him up anyway.
Cassie placed their Dad’s house with a realtor and packed away any valuables into storage. She’d had to take a couple of days off to do it. If and when the house sold, then there would have to be a sale of whatever was left. She had power of attorney for Dad so she’d be able to make the decisions. Hopefully, there would be enough money to keep their father in the Assisted Living place. It was a worry that she pushed to the back of her mind. Dad had a bank account, yes, but it was very small. He depended on his pension and social security. He’d retired early and needed some of his capital to keep up the maintenance on the house. When her mother got sick, that took the rest of it. Maybe if some more money came from the Challenge, that could help. If it didn't, she'd find a way.
Since Thanksgiving was coming up, Cassie had thought it might be nice if she, Lee, Stevie, and Dad could host it and invite Derek and Rob. She wasn’t sure about Rob as he might have other plans, but she’d invite him anyway. Cassie’s roommate was going home so she wouldn’t be around. They could have it in the condo, pulling the leaves out in the table. This thought cheered her up. It would be great to have a family occasion because they had so few of them.
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